


i always have

by fannishtendencies



Category: She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018), Sonic the Hedgehog - All Media Types
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Catradora Scene, First Kiss, Flashbacks, He-Ra, Knuckles is Adora, M/M, Mobius is Etheria, She-Ra!Sonic AU, Sonic Is Bad At Feelings, Sonic Is Catra, Sonic POV, based on a comic i made
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-02
Updated: 2020-07-02
Packaged: 2021-03-05 02:49:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,529
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25037263
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fannishtendencies/pseuds/fannishtendencies
Summary: First, I drew a comic, which you can find on my dA @qartcode. THEN, I wrote this thing.She Ra/Sonic fusion. Sonic is Catra, Knux is Adora. Based on the Kiss scene because it's the perfect blend of angst and fluff. Mostly Sonic's pov. Two flashbacks! Add in my love for these characters and boom! This fic.
Relationships: Knuckles the Echidna/Sonic the Hedgehog
Comments: 4
Kudos: 10





	i always have

~°~°~°~°~

####  _before_.

~°~°~°~°~

_ "Knuckles, you can't do this." _

_ The echidna barreled forward, ignoring Sonic's words. The scowl on his face told Sonic that he was listening, though.  _

_ "And why not?" Knuckles growled under his breath. "Why should I not save the world? Why should I not save my friends? Why should I - " He stopped abruptly, face burning. Sonic had no idea what he was going to say, but he didn't push it. _

_ "There has to be another way. You can't -" - he didn't dare meet Knuckles' eyes as his voice caught - "- you can't just sacrifice yourself, just because  _ **_he_ ** _ said so." _

_ "I'm not doing it because of him." Neither of them wanted to say his name, not so soon after what they'd seen. But Knuckles' voice was still firm. "I'm doing it because it's my duty to Mobius." His scowling furrowed, frustration clear as day on his face. "Not that you'd understand." _

_ Now Sonic was annoyed, so he bit the bait. "And what do you mean by that, He-Ra?" _

_ "You wouldn't understand loyalty if it shot you in the chest." The words were bittersweet, a reminder of everything.  _

_ ~°~°~°~°~ _

######  _ after. _

_ ~°~°~°~°~ _

"I'm sorry." Barely a whisper of breath, as Knuckles went limp in his arms.

The shock of it stung him frozen, and for a moment the air stilled, waiting for Sonic. The exact opposite of what usually happened; usually the world needed to catch up to  _ him _ . Fastest thing alive. Former Horde soldier. But it was lost on him.

The body lying in his arms was a signal of doom for Mobius. Without the powers He-Ra possessed, the Princes were hopeless. Everything had relied on Knuckles, and it had broken him.

The world was lost to Prime, but all Sonic could think of was the echidna he'd known. 

_ Dead _ .

The word was too harsh for his mind. It brought him back to the moment, to the here and now. He shivered. "No…"  _ Knuckles _ .... 

Tears were searing, blurring the scene in front of him. They stayed firmly put, hot and heavy. He kept them there, trying to think of something,  _ anything  _ he could do, scrambling for that quick solution he seemed to always have in his back pocket. 

_ I never got to tell you. _

" _ No _ ! No, no, no!"

He gripped Knuckles' shoulders, and the tiniest shudder sent another wave of emotion roiling through him.  _ Knuckles! You - you're still there!  _ The following exhale confirmed it. 

Still alive. Still a chance.  _ Nothing is set in stone. _ So Sonic started doing the one thing he had avoided all his life, had been drilled was showing weakness: he poured his heart out.

It started small. "Knuckles, I... I've known you all my life."  _ Stupid, stupid _ . "You were such a good friend to me. Even when you left, before.... before I almost destroyed the world." He chuckled sadly, and some tears fell, staining his chest darker blue.

"I'm sorry, okay? You don't deserve someone like me. Someone whose heart is as flimsy as plastic. I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry."

His grip tightened. He hadn't seen a breath in minutes, but it felt like hours.

His voice grew faster now, more desperate. _Please, no. No._ "This past week has been the best time of my life. Turns out princes aren't so bad, haha." His laugh was bittersweet now, thinking of those darker times, of when he had hurt Tails, Amy... "I'll tell them I'm sorry a thousand times over if you come back. Promise."

The word had slipped from his lips, but as he said it a pang went through his heart.

~°~°~°~°~

######  _ then. _

~°~°~°~°~ 

_ He was hiding from the world. At seven years old, the world was Scourge and Shadow Weaver.  _

_ And Knuckles, of course. _

_ "Sonic! Sonic! Where are…" the voice hushed, and Sonic tensed, muscles aching to run again. It was the easiest thing in the world, and he was apparently really good at it too. He didn't want the echidna to see him crying. _

_ "Sonic?" The voice was gentle, and Sonic made the mistake of looking up. A soft smile was on his fellow seven-year-old's face. "Hiya." _

_ "Hmmph." He wouldn't talk to this… this traitor. He turned up his nose.  _

_ A shift. Knuckles was sitting next to him now. "Why did you punch Scourge?" The question was light; no judgement. Still, Sonic bristled. _

_ "Because… ugh! You're supposed to be  _ **_my_ ** _ friend!" _

_ Knuckles looked taken aback. "I am your friend. Aren't I?" He showed off a big grin, smoothing it over with his gap-charm-charm. That's all you needed when you were seven, after all. _

_ "Of course," Sonic quickly affirmed, though the returning smile didn't quite match Knuckles' intensity. "Forget it." He hugged his best, and only, friend close.  _

~°~°~°~°~

######  _ now. _

~°~°~°~°~

He was sobbing now. It hurts, it hurts, it  _ hurts _ , and he can't run away from it. He can't pull away, make a joke, or even destroy the world. Because it won't change the way Knuckles changed him, wormed into his heart...

And then he felt it. Tugging at his soul. He took a breath, and was pulled under. He was standing in a doorway, the light pouring from it near unbearable, and was staring at Knuckles.

He was chained by darkness Prime had sent. The expression on his face was a hammer to Sonic's heart, but He-Ra was still fighting against it. Hope sprouted in Sonic's chest.  _ If I can just reach him... _

"Knuckles!"

The echidna looked up, and they locked eyes, green on purple. His lips moved, but Sonic was too far away to hear the word. Or was Prime trying to block him out? _Reach harder._

"You can't give up on me. You've never given up on anything in your life." For the planet, for Mobius. For Tails, for Amy, for Shadow, for Rouge, for Silver, for Blaze... the list went on of people he'd befriended. He didn't match up. Still, he shouted louder than before, left hand reaching out, right hand gripping on their one way out. " Not even me!"

_ The lost cause of the Horde.  _

Knuckles was straining, gasping, reaching with all his might. The light in his eyes was all but gone, and the color seemed to drain from him. But Sonic wouldn't let him go; not now, not ever. It was in his blood; he couldn't deny it now.

"So don't you dare start now!"

"It's hopeless!" The voice was deeper, as if with age. Prime was speaking as well. 

"No! Knuckles!" They were almost there. He could feel Prime, in the edges of his mind, and  _ it hurts, it hurts, it hurts _ . Prime was playing with him, keeping Knuckles so close yet so far. 

"Don't you get it? I love you." Had he gotten closer? Sonic didn't know, he was too focused at the task at hand. When he dared take a breath, the room seemed to brighten, the light pouring in like the tide. "I always have. So please! Just this once!"

A thousand memories flooded his mind, trying to distract him from his cause. At the Horde. Prince Prom. At the edges of the world. All times that had one thing in common: when he pushed Knuckles away.

He wasn't going to make the mistake again.

  
  


"Stay!"

Their hands clasped together, and the room filled with a rainbow of colors. Sonic was back first, still hanging over Knuckles' body protectively. The Heart, as if on cue, sent a wave of electricity through the room, and Sonic braced himself for impact.

It never came.

Instead, a shield apparated. A hand, warm on his shoulder, and Sonic realized Knuckles had awoken.

_ It worked. _

"Knuckles!"

He hugged him close, closer than ever before. His heart was bursting, bursting,  _ bursting _ with love. He's here. It's going to be fine. It's going to be okay.

"You...." Knuckles struggled to say something. Sonic pulled away, so that their eyes could meet again. 

"You love me?"

Everything he had said, back in the green room, had been under uncertain circumstances. If that was the last time Sonic would see Knuckles, he wanted to make sure to get everything out. But he didn't care. Not now, at least.

Knuckles was alright. That was all that mattered.

So he tried to shrug it off. "You're such an idiot," he said playfully, looking away. Planning for the moment his heart was broken for the second time, the moment he'd have to pick up the pieces of himself again. When Knuckles told him he didn't feel the same.

But when he looked back, there wasn't a look of disgust on Knuckles' face. Nor pity. His cheeks were stained with tears, but his eyes were filled to the brim with caring. With love.

"I love you too."

His eyes widened. His heart dropped into a void. His was struck wordless, and his mind filled only with those four words.  _ I love you too. _

He leaned in, eyes closing, and before he knew it, they were kissing.

It was softer, softer than anything Sonic had had the luxury to experience. It pumped adrenaline into his veins, fast and hot, and he decided that he never wanted it to end. It hurts, of course, but it's also everything he's ever wanted.

  
  


_ Finally, finally, finally.  _

~°~°~°~°~

**Author's Note:**

> gaynbow kisses forever baby ~
> 
> feel free to kudo/comment!


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